1. Technical Field
The invention relates to azaadamantane ester and carbamate derivatives, compositions comprising such compounds, and methods of preventing or treating conditions and disorders using such compounds and compositions.
2. Description of Related Technology
Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs), belonging to the super family of ligand gated ion channels (LGIC), are widely distributed throughout the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS), and gate the flow of cations, controlled by acetylcholine (ACh). The nAChRs can be divided into nicotinic receptors of the muscular junction (NMJ) and neuronal nAChRs or neuronal nicotinic receptors (NNRs). The NNRs are understood to play an important role in regulating CNS function and the release of many neurotransmitters, including, but not necessarily limited to acetylcholine, norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin and GABA. Consequently, nicotinic receptors mediate a very wide range of physiological effects, and have been targeted for therapeutic treatment of disorders relating to cognitive function, learning and memory, neurodegeneration, pain and inflammation, psychosis and sensory gating, mood and emotion, among others.
Many subtypes of NNRs exist in the CNS and periphery. Each subtype has a different effect on regulating the overall physiological function.
Typically, NNRs are ion channels that are constructed from a pentameric assembly of subunit proteins. Sixteen subunits of nAChRs have been reported to date, which are identified as α2-α10, β1-β4, γ, δ, and ε. Of these subunits, nine subunits, α2 through α7 and β2 through β4, prominently exist in the mammalian brain. Multiple functionally distinct nAChR complexes also exist, for example five α7 subunits can form a receptor as a homomeric functional pentamer or combinations of different subunits can complex together as in the case of α4β2 and α3β4 receptors (see for example, Vincler, M., McIntosh, J. M., Targeting the α9α10 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor to treat severe pain, Exp. Opin. Ther. Targets, 2007, 11 (7): 891-897; Paterson, D. and Nordberg, A., Neuronal nicotinic receptors in the human brain, Prog. Neurobiol. 2000, 61: 75-111; Hogg, R. C., Raggenbass, M., Bertrand, D., Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors: from structure to brain function, Rev. Physiol., Biochem. Pharmacol., 2003, 147: 1-46; Gotti, C., Clementi, F., Neuronal nicotinic receptors: from structure to pathology, Prog. Neurobiol., 2004, 74: 363-396). These subunits provide for a great variety of homomeric and heteromeric combinations that account for the diverse receptor subtypes.
The NNRs, in general, are involved in various cognitive functions, such as learning, memory, attention, and therefore in CNS disorders, i.e., Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Tourette's syndrome, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, pain, and tobacco dependence (see for example, Keller, J. J., Keller, A. B., Bowers, B. J., Wehner, J. M., Performance of alpha7 nicotinic receptor null mutants is impaired in appetitive learning measured in a signaled nose poke task, Behav. Brain Res., 2005, 162: 143-52; Gundish, D., Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor ligands as potential therapeutics, Expert Opin. Ther. Patents, 2005, 15 (9): 1221-1239; De Luca, V., Likhodi, O., Van Tol, H. H., Kennedy, J. L., Wong, A. H., Regulation of alpha7-nicotinic receptor subunit and alpha7-like gene expression in the prefrontal cortex of patients with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, Acta Psychiatr. Scand., 2006, 114: 211-5).
The homomeric α7 receptor is one of the most abundant nicotinic receptors, along with α4β2 receptors, in the human brain, wherein it is heavily expressed in the hippocampus, cortex, thalamic nuclei, ventral tegmental area and substantia nigra (see for example, Broad, L. M., Sher, E., Astles, P. C., Zwart, R., O'Neill, M. J., Selective α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor ligands for the treatment of neuropsychiatric diseases, Drugs of the Future, 2007, 32(2): 161-170).
The role of α7 NNRs in neuronal signaling in the CNS also has been actively investigated (see for example, Couturier, S., Bertrand, D., Matter, J. M., Hernandez, M. C., Bertrand, S., Millar, N., Valera, S., Barkas, T., Ballivet, M., A neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit (alpha 7) is developmentally regulated and forms a homo-oligomeric channel blocked by alpha-BTX, Neuron, 1990, 5: 847-56). The α7 NNRs have been demonstrated to regulate interneuron excitability, modulate the release of excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters, and lead to neuroprotective effects in experimental in vitro models of cellular damage (see for example, Alkondon, M., Albuquerque, E. X., The nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes and their function in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex, Prog. Brain Res., 2004, 145: 109-20).
Biophysical studies have shown that ion channels comprised of α7 subunits, when expressed in heterologous expression systems, activate and desensitize rapidly, and furthermore, exhibit relatively higher calcium permeability compared to other NNR combinations (see for example, Dajas-Bailador, F., Wonnacott, S., Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and the regulation of neuronal signaling, Trends Pharmacol. Sci., 2004, 25: 317-24).
The NNR ligands have been also implicated in smoking cessation, weight control and as potential analgesics (see for example, Balbani, A. P. S., Montovani, J. C., Recent developments for smoking cessation and treatment of nicotine dependence, Exp. Opin. Ther. Patents, 2003, 13 (7): 287-297; Gurwitz, D., The therapeutic potential of nicotine and nicotinic agonists for weight control, Exp. Opin. Invest. Drugs, 1999, 8(6): 747-760; Vincler, M., Neuronal nicotinic receptors as targets for novel analgesics, Exp. Opin. Invest. Drugs, 2005, 14 (10): 1191-1198; Bunnelle, W. H., Decker, M. W., Neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor ligands as potential analgesics, Exp. Opin. Ther. Patents, 2003, 13 (7): 1003-1021; Decker, M. W., Meyer, M. D., Sullivan, J. P., The therapeutic potential of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor agonists for pain control, Exp. Opin. Invest. Drugs, 2001, 10 (10): 1819-1830; Vincler, M., McIntosh, J. M., Targeting the α9α10 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor to treat severe pain, Exp. Opin. Ther. Targets, 2007, 11 (7): 891-897).
The α7 and α4β2 NNRs have been shown to play a significant role in enhancing cognitive function, including aspects of learning, memory and attention (Levin, E. D., J. Neurobiol. 53: 633-640, 2002). For example, α7 NNRs have been linked to conditions and disorders related to attention deficit disorder, ADHD, AD, mild cognitive impairment, senile dementia, dementia associated with Lewy bodies, dementia associated with Down's syndrome, AIDS dementia, Pick's disease, as well as cognitive deficits associated with schizophrenia (CDS), among other systemic activities. The α4β2 receptor subtype is implicated in attention, cognition, epilepsy, and pain control (Paterson, D. and Nordberg, A., Neuronal nicotinic receptors in the human brain, Prog. Neurobiol. 2000, 61: 75-111).
Certain compounds, like the plant alkaloid nicotine, interact with all known subtypes of the nAChRs, accounting for the profound physiological effects of this compound. Nicotine is known to provide enhanced attention and cognitive performance, reduced anxiety, enhanced sensory gating, and analgesia and neuroprotective effects when administered. Such effects are mediated by the non-selective effect of nicotine at a variety of nicotinic receptor subtypes. However, nicotine also produces adverse consequences, such as cardiovascular and gastrointestinal problems that interfere at therapeutic doses, and its addictive nature and acute toxicity are well-known. Accordingly, there is a need to identify subtype-selective compounds that evoke the beneficial effects of nicotine while eliminating or decreasing adverse effects.
The activity at the NNRs can be modified or regulated by the administration of subtype selective NNR ligands. The ligands can exhibit antagonist, agonist, or partial agonist properties and thus have potential in treatment of various cognitive disorders.
Although compounds that nonselectively demonstrate activity at a range of nicotinic receptor subtypes including the α4β2 and α7 NNRs are known, it would be beneficial to provide compounds that interact selectively with α7-containing neuronal NNRs, α4β2 NNRs, or both α7 and α4β2 NNRs compared to other subtypes.